Greens back away from Labor’s human source laws despite Symes confirming changes to bill

The Greens have backed away from the Andrews govt’s controversial human source legislation amid concerns the laws could enable another Lawyer X saga.

Doubt has been cast over the Andrews government’s contentious police informants bill after the Greens walked back their support for the new legislation.

The proposed new laws – which aims to regulate the way that police use informants in the wake of the explosive Lawyer X scandal – was due to go to a vote in parliament on Thursday.

But fears have been raised that pushing ahead with the proposed laws would allow another Lawyer X saga to occur.

The Victorian Greens on Thursday afternoon backed away from supporting the legislation until it could properly work out its stance.

“We are still working through our concerns with the government around this bill, and are not in a position to support it this afternoon,” Greens justice spokeswoman Katherine Copsey said in a statement.

Katherine Copsey says the Greens are still working through their concerns with the legislation.

“The Greens share many of the concerns raised by legal experts including the lack of adequate protections for children who may be registered as reportable human sources.

“We’re also concerned about the lack of effective independent oversight or power to limit the recruitment of certain individuals being registered as reportable human sources.

“We hope to continue constructive negotiations with the government so that these reforms can be improved before they are passed.”

Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes on Wednesday confirmed the government had drafted changes to its Human Source Management Bill hoping to address key complaints.

It comes after concerns were raised by senior members of the legal profession, and in the Herald Sun which broke the Lawyer X saga, that the laws still allowed lawyers to dob in their clients.

Ms Symes said the changes would raise the threshold that Victoria’s Police Commissioner would need to meet to use a lawyer as a source.

Jaclyn Symes has confirmed the government has drafted changes to its human source legislation. Picture: David Crosling

“At the outset, it is my view, as well as the (Royal) Commission’s view, that lawyers shouldn’t be used as human sources except in the most exceptional and rarest of circumstances,” she said.

“Circumstances that prevent risks to their safety such as murder or threats to national security.

“The amendments that I’ll be proposing further clarify that the threshold is extremely high in that police chief commissioner has to be satisfied that there is an imminent risk to a person’s safety or the safety of the community and must be convinced that there is no alternative sources of securing that information.”

Another change would require that police also seek approval from the Supreme Court if they felt these criteria had been met.

“This isn’t about the police going to recruit lawyers to snitch on their clients,” Ms Symes said.

The changes come after backlash that the proposed laws would allow another Lawyer X scandal.

“This is going to be in the most extreme circumstances where legally privileged information may be used to stop something terrible from happening.”

Ms Symes said the government had spoken with Margaret McMurdo, who led the royal commission into the saga, and that she was comfortable with the changes.

But Shadow Attorney-General Michael O’Brien said the government had not addressed the key issue with the laws.

“The government amendments will still allow a lawyer to be used to inform on their own client,” he said.

“Lawyer X can and will happen all over again if Labor’s amendments are accepted by the upper house.

“We don’t want to see Lawyer X happen ever again. That was the clear message from the High Court and Victoria’s Court of Appeal.”